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Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Security in the Infield

Brad Emaus - Not a Forgotten Man Yet

Brad Emaus has continued to impress this spring with his gritty play as well as his performance at the plate. To date he has hit .375 with 6 RBI and played solid even if unspectacular defense. This is a continuation of last year’s spring when he tore the cover off the ball and impressed the Blue Jay brass. What we have in Emaus is the making of a solid major leaguer who continues to improve over time. Though not blessed with speed, he is discriminating at the plate, does take a walk and gets on base regularly – the makings of a good #2 hitter.

At Tulane Emaus played both 2B and 3B and the Jays have been using him at both positions as a potential backup or future position player at 3B. Third would not be his natural position, but he can defend effectively there and does hit enough home runs to be dangerous.

Though slightly larger in stature, Emaus is a poor man’s Dustin Pedroia considering the way the 2 men play the game. Without the natural talent of Pedroia, Emaus will have to scratch and claw his way to the big team. However, without any depth behind Aaron Hill (except for backup John McDonald) in their permanent lineup and lots of opportunity at 3B considering the Jays’ options there, Emaus could surprise a lot of people given an opportunity due to injury. He has performed admirably everywhere he has played and at every level. There is no reason to believe he wouldn’t do so at the major league level.

More Jason Frasor Trade Fodder

Buster Olney writes that the Padres are likely to hold off trading Heath Bell until closer to the trading deadline to drive up his value. His track record might be appealing to the Twins to replace Joe Nathan, but they are more likely looking for a short term solution. Jason Frasor would fit the bill of requiring only a one year commitment and the concession of a middle level prospect like Ben Revere. If Frasor performed to his potential he could end up being a class A free agent. This would end up being a bonus for the Twins, returning a couple of potential draft choices in return.